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PAPER

Purpose: For Decision




Committee EXECUTIVE

Date TUESDAY, 9 SEPTEMBER 2014

Title COMMUNITY GROWING SCHEMES

Report to EXECUTIVE MEMBER FOR SUSTAINABILITY,
ENVIRONMENT & PUBLIC REALM


EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

1. This report proposes for adoption by the Executive a community growing policy to
give not-for-profit community organisations access to council land for community
growing projects. The policy defines community growing as the production of
vegetables, herbs and fruit.

2. Once adopted it is hoped that the policy will help communities to implement growing
schemes, whilst providing sufficient safeguards for the council in the use and
management of its land.

BACKGROUND

3. Improving the Islands self-sufficiency in local food production (i.e. local food) is
considered to be an important element of the councils approach to improving the
overall sustainability of the Island because:-

it increases local resilience to food shortages or interruptions to food supply;
it reduces food miles;
it provides opportunities for jobs and economic growth;
it improves health (nutrition and exercise) and wellbeing;
it can help address poverty;
it makes more efficient use of the councils land assets

4. Resilience is considered the most important of all these elements and refers to a
communitys ability to be able to deal with major food shortages, and adapt to
disturbances, for example from severe weather events or loss of infrastructure.

5. The council has been working with a number of local stakeholders, including the
Island Sustainability Forum, Gift to Nature and the Orchard Group, to identify ways of
promoting community growing schemes. These stakeholders and other community
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groups consider that the availability of suitable land for fruit and vegetable growing is
a barrier to improving food resilience. There is therefore potential benefit in making
under used council-owned land available for community growing projects. It is
envisaged that this might include underused areas of parks, grass verges and other
open spaces. This paper proposes a policy to govern the occupation of council-
owned land by community groups, rather than individuals, to promote community
growing schemes and in accordance with specified criteria. The policy will ensure
that:

land will only be available to groups, not individuals;
produce may be sold, but groups must be not-for-profit organisations which
are capable of entering into a proper legal arrangement for the land;
parcels of land will be available for up to 25 years, with suitable break
clauses;
a peppercorn rent will be charged, with the interested group paying the
councils legal and property/surveyors costs, a contribution to which must be
made in advance;
land nominated for community growing schemes must not have a well-
established recreational use;
projects must support habitat creation and biodiversity and be compliant with
Bee Cause Initiative (promoted nationally by Friends of the Earth and
supported formally by IWC)

6. Recommendations for land allocations under the community growing policy will be
considered by the Head of Economy in consultation with the Executive member.
Sites of a strategic nature or where the application could result in potential loss of a
capital receipt will need to be considered by the Property Disposal and Capital
Programme Sub Committee before an agreement is concluded.

STRATEGIC CONTEXT

7. The policy supports delivery of the Health and Well Being Strategy 2013-16 by
facilitating the active participation of local communities in projects which support the
sustainable prosperity of the Island. This policy will help the move towards greater
sustainability and resilience to climate change, and help to promote improved health
whilst reducing food miles and enhancing the natural environment.

8. With regards to the Corporate Plan 2014-17, the policy contributes to the priority of
Working in partnerships to improve outcomes, those outcomes being increased
community participation, better health, reduced poverty and greater Island resilience.

9. The root and branch review of public open spaces, allotments and sports pitches
concluded that as the council reduced the scope of its maintenance of these areas
there would be greater opportunities for local communities to take responsibility for
them. This in turn would allow the development of community growing schemes, the
planting of orchards, food forests and woodlands to promote sustainability.

10. This policy has been developed alongside the emerging Strategic Asset
Management Plan (SAMP) the draft of which allows for community groups interested
in acquiring an asset for purposes which are aligned with the councils corporate
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objectives and the ability to occupy the land on terms which reflect the wider benefits
that could be achieved.

CONSULTATION

11. The proposal has been discussed with the Island Sustainability Forum, a group
representing the Islands environmental sector and businesses involved in the green
economy. The forum was supportive, but felt that a minimum 25 year agreement to
use the land would be required to justify the investment in time, money and effort of
the community group. While that may be possible for some areas of land, the use of
other areas may need to be reviewed within that timescale. In addition legal services
have advised that it would be more costly and time consuming to terminate a lease if
for example the land were not maintained in an acceptable state, than a licence. It is
therefore recommended that the policy is to usually issue a licence, but leaves it
open as to the arrangement to be agreed for each area of land, so it will be what is
appropriate for that area of land.

FINANCIAL / BUDGET IMPLICATIONS

12. There is no direct income benefit to the council, since land will be available at a
peppercorn rent. However, the development of a community growing scheme may
provide a cost saving to the council if it no longer has to fund its maintenance. The
impact of this will depend on both the amount of land used by the scheme and the
ability of the existing grounds maintenance contract to reflect the change. However
experience shows that setting up these agreements can take a significant amount of
officer capacity, so it is essential that the councils legal and property costs are paid
by the proposed community group and a contribution to this is secured in advance.
The full financial implications will be detailed in the reports to the Property Disposal
and Capital Programme Sub-Committee before a final decision on a scheme is
taken.

13. Allowing the use of land for community growing projects may require the council to
forego potential capital receipts from the sale of the land. This will need to be
considered on a site by site basis and the full impacts will be specified in future
reports once the sites have been requested and the potential market value has been
assessed. Against this the council will need to consider the community benefit
resulting from their proposed use. It is not the intention that this policy will be used to
frustrate development proposals; rather, land for community growing schemes is
likely to be that with little development potential.

14. The process for assessing and approving the use of council land for community
growing projects will require staff time across a number of service areas, particularly
asset management, legal and parks. The development of standard agreements and
heads of terms will minimise this requirement, however, high levels of interest in
taking up community growing places will have to be considered against corporate
priorities, particularly the disposal of properties (both vacant schools and surplus
corporate premises). These will be given a higher priority as without these capital
receipts the council cannot deliver its agreed schools and corporate capital
programmes.

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15. The council will require community groups to be responsible for all enabling costs
and resources relating to a particular scheme which will include legal and property
but also those associated with any required planning approvals or works to the land
as requirement of the scheme.

CARBON EMISSIONS

16. It is unlikely that the sites to be used for community growing projects will have a
fixed, metered supply of gas or electricity meaning that the sites will not contribute to
the councils carbon footprint for the CRC Energy Efficiency Scheme. If they do have
an existing supply, this will be transferred to the land user, which will also be
responsible for arranging any new supplies if required. Therefore, the policy will have
no impact on the councils carbon footprint.

LEGAL IMPLICATIONS

17. The council has the power to dispose of property under section 123 of the Local
Government Act 1972, which requires it to achieve best consideration in any
disposal. Best consideration does not necessarily mean the highest price achievable.
It can also be obtained from other additional benefits generated by and for the local
community from the disposal, provided that the council observes its fiduciary
responsibilities and protects the interests of the community and itself in the
transaction.

18. If land is leased to an organisation for community growing schemes then the council
will need to be mindful of the conditions under which it could be considered as an
allotment garden under the Allotments Act 1992. The conditions are:

The land does not exceed 40 poles in extent (around of an acre);
The land is wholly or mainly cultivated by the occupier for the production of
vegetable or fruit crops;
These crops are grown for consumption by the occupier or his family.
In these circumstances the council could not re-claim possession of its land quickly
as the tenant would be protected under the Act. At least 12 months notice would be
required to terminate the tenancy.

19. In order to avoid falling under the provisions of the Allotments Act, the agreement
with the organisation should set out how the land is to be used and the rights and
responsibilities of both the council, as landowner, and the organisation. The period of
the agreement and the process for ending it should also be set out clearly. The
agreement should make clear that the land is not to be used for the purpose of a
trade or business unless it is by a not-for-profit organisation.

20. Planning permission may be required if the community growing space is developed
as part of its use, by, for example, adding buildings such as sheds, greenhouses or
polytunnels, changing the shape of the land or installing drainage and irrigation
systems or laying hard surfaces such as roads or parking areas.

21. The council could choose to grant a lease or licence to the organisation proposing a
community growing scheme. A licence would provide greater flexibility to both
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parties and allow the proposed activity to be combined with other uses on the land
which a lease would not allow for. A licence could also be reviewed to allow
consideration of changes in ownership or use on adjoining land where opportunities
for sales or longer leases might otherwise be lost.

22. Where the council decides that a lease arrangement is more suitable, this would
grant a legal interest in the land and the community organisation would be entitled to
exclusive possession of the land for the period stated in the lease. This may only be
suitable for organisations that need to access funding for which a long term lease is
required.

23. The legal preference would therefore be a licence which would allow the community
group to use the councils land without committing a trespass. In summary, a licence
is a more flexible arrangement for the council as landowner and any community
organisation.

EQUALITY AND DIVERSITY

24. The council as a public body is required to meet its statutory obligations under the
Equality Act 2010 to have due regard to eliminate unlawful discrimination, promote
equal opportunities between people from different groups and to foster good
relations between people who share a protected characteristic and people who do
not share it. The protected characteristics are: age, disability, gender reassignment,
marriage and civil partnership, pregnancy and maternity, race, religion or belief, sex
and sexual orientation.

25. An equality impact assessment (EIA) screening has been conducted, which suggests
that the policy itself does not have an impact on people with protected
characteristics, although it is possible that specific proposals may have an impact on
protected groups. The policy requires the applicant to provide details of their project
and these will be subject to an EIA by the council before the granting of an
agreement for the use of the land is decided by the Property Disposal and Capital
Programme Sub-Committee. Therefore, the procedure for implementing the policy is
the means by which the council will meet its duties under the Equalities Act 2010 for
each application that it receives.

PROPERTY IMPLICATIONS

26. This report deals with a policy for the use of council property. It is consistent with the
emerging Strategic Asset Management Plan and the best value implications of each
application will be fully assessed in separate council reports prior to the approval of
any agreement for the use of the land. If the scheme is attractive to community
groups the resources required to facilitate discussions and conclude agreements are
not currently available without impacting on the existing priorities of the property
team which are to manage the councils assets portfolio including delivery of asset
disposals to meet the commitments set out in the councils schools and corporate
capital programmes.

OPTIONS

27. The options for the council are:
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Option 1 - To approve the Community Growing Policy set out in the appendix
Option 2 - To reject the Community Growing Policy set out in the appendix
Option 3 - To approve the Community Growing Policy set out in the appendix
with modifications to the terms, criteria or process;

RISK MANAGEMENT

28. The proposition in the first instance is to seek licence agreements as this will be the
most flexible approach for both the council and community groups although a lack of
certainty may mean lower levels of take up and could also impact on available grant
funding which in some cases requires longer legal interest in the land. Whilst a
reasonably long-term agreement of up to 25 years could be offered to allow groups
access to funding, time to make the land productive and reward their efforts, there
will be at least a five year break clause and termination rights which will allow the
agreement to be ended if the land is not being used in accordance with the policy.
Furthermore, at the application stage, community groups will be required to submit a
maintenance and development plan which will demonstrate that they have the
resources, skills and vision to deliver the project successfully. The council will have
to be assured that these plans are realistic before an agreement is granted. At the
end of the agreement, or an activation of the break clause or termination clause, the
community group may be required to leave the land in good condition but the council
will retain the option of accepting the return of the land in its current state (it may for
example wish to retain planted trees and the like). A renewal of the agreement will
also be an option. Land for community growing schemes will only be issued to
properly constituted, not-for-profit community organisations to prevent the
commercial exploitation of council land.

29. There is potential for a community growing project to become an issue of local
environmental concern if it is not maintained properly. In order to prevent this, the
keeping of livestock or other animals will not be permitted. The maintenance and
development plan must show how the applicant intends to prevent causing a public
nuisance. It must also demonstrate knowledge of growing practices and the
resources required to maintain the site in good condition; and the applicant must
show that it has the skills to maintain the site, or how it will develop these skills. The
community organisation managing the project will be required to have adequate
insurance in place for the protection of workers, volunteers and the public.

30. This policy will result in different uses of council land than at present; there is
therefore a potential for loss of amenity value and/or biodiversity. Early in the
application process, council staff will assess the habitat and amenity value of the site
and determine whether a community growing project is appropriate or whether the
site is more valuable for alternative uses, such as habitat enhancement. Applications
will not be acceptable if they prevent well-established recreational uses of the site.
All projects will be expected to show some benefit for biodiversity and they will need
to comply with the councils existing policies, for example, the Bee Cause Initiative
Policy. There will be encouragement of organic growing methods. Applicants will
also be expected to show that their proposal has the support of the local community,
for example, through the backing of the local town or parish council.

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31. There is a risk that some areas of land become allotments in accordance with the
relevant legislation which would increase the difficulty of managing the sites
developed for community growing projects and their recovery by the council in the
long term. It is not the intention of this policy to create new allotment sites and this
risk will be mitigated by clear legal agreements for the occupation of the site and the
purposes for which it can be used.

EVALUATION

32. The policy, as presented, has been developed in consultation with the Islands
environmental sector and with reference to national guidance. It supports the
objectives of the Sustainable Community Strategy and Corporate Plan. The policy
responds to the localism agenda by recognising local needs and aspirations;
providing a long-term solution to management of public spaces, and the potential to
improve amenity value. It will give community groups greater involvement in shaping
their local environment and, for individuals, greater participation and hands-on
experience, improving their skills and possibly providing employment opportunities.

33. The proposed policy has attempted to balance the needs of community groups for a
relatively straight forward process, whilst providing a consistent and transparent
approach which safeguards the council and local communities from poorly designed
and badly maintained projects. The policy is designed to be cost neutral to the
council and may provide savings in future years as areas of land are removed from
the grounds maintenance contract. It should be recognised that implementation of
the policy will require staff time at the assessment and development stage and there
could be loss of future capital receipts if the land has development value. This could
impact on other priorities being delivered by the relevant service areas, in particular
legal and property. The impact on capital receipts will be fully assessed prior to final
consideration by the Property Disposal and Capital Programme Sub-Committee and
it is primarily the intention of this Policy to make use of areas of land with little
development value.

34. The proposed terms for the use of the land, together with the assessment criteria
and application process are outlined in the policy. These are designed to mitigate the
risks outlined earlier. The policy would be subject to annual reviews to confirm that it
delivers the councils required outcomes of it.

35. The policy has been developed with due regard to publications from the Department
for Communities and Local Government, Federation of City Farms and Community
Gardens, and Asset Transfer Unit/CABE Space.

36. The council can decide not to approve the policy given it does not encompass a
statutory duty or function of the authority. If it chooses this option, an opportunity to
promote community engagement and participation, along with the associated
economic, social and environmental benefits, will be lost although current
procedures and processes within the council would still enable the authority to enter
into such agreements albeit on an ad hoc basis. The Property Disposal and Capital
Programme Sub-Committee will make the final decision on whether permission is
granted for a community growing project to proceed on sites of strategic importance.
This allows the opportunity for a final consideration of the financial and social
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implications of schemes on a case by case basis, and gives the council a degree of
control in this regard.

RECOMMENDATION

37. Option 1 - To approve the Community Growing Policy set out in the appendix

APPENDICES ATTACHED

38. Appendix Community Growing Policy.





Contact Point: J im Fawcett, Principal Officer (Low Carbon Projects),
01983 821000 ext. 6302 jim.fawcett@iow.gov.uk



J OHN METCALFE
Head of Economy and Tourism
COUNCILLOR LUISA HILLARD
Executive Member for Sustainability